This Simple Hand Trick Can Help Determine Your Steak's Doneness

As the saying goes, there's more than one way to skin a cat. Or in this case, there's more than one way to cook a steak. You can sear it on the stove. You can TK in a cast iron skillet in the oven. You can even sous vide it in a water bath. But regardless of how you choose to prepare it, there's one key thing everyone cares about it when it comes to their steak — the temperature.

Whether it's a ribeye, filet, or T-bone, people have strong opinions and preferences on how they like their beef prepared. Some like it rare, some like it medium, and some even like it well-done. Typically, you'd determine the temperature of a steak using a meat thermometer. For instance, a medium steak should be between 135 and 145 degrees (via ThermoWorks). However, if you don't have a thermometer — or you don't feel like digging it out of the drawer — no worries. There's an easy way to test your steak's doneness without using any equipment.

Surprisingly enough, all you really need to determine whether or not your steak is cooked to your liking is your hand — no meat thermometer necessary. Butcher Boy Market explains that you can compare the feel of certain areas of your palm to the feel of your steak to figure out what temperature it is. First, place your pointer finger at the bottom of your palm below the thumb. This is where you'll judge the texture and softness. 

A rare steak should feel slightly firmer like when you touch your pointer finger to your thumb. A medium rare steak is a little firmer than that, like when you touch your ring finger to your thumb. And a well-done steak is even more firm, like when you touch your pinky finger to your thumb and that spot where your other finger is on your palm tenses up the most. Sound weird? Simply Recipes says that this "finger test" is actually what a lot of professional chefs use to judge their steaks. Maybe worth trying for yourself next time or you could simply order one already prepared from a steakhouse.